Post-Exposure Prophylaxis: Knowledge and Practice Among General Dental Practitioners in Hamadan, Iran

Proper and timely post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) after needle stick exposure to high-risk body fluids significantly reduces occupational transmission. This study was conducted with the aim of demonstrating the level of knowledge and practice amongst general dental practitioners in Hamadan city, Iran in 2013 - 14, in terms of prevention after dealing with blood-borne pathogens. In this descriptive cross-sectional study, all general dental practitioners in Hamadan provided information on their preventative approach after dealing with blood-borne pathogens, via a pretested self-administered questionnaire in three parts. The first part consisted of demographic features, the second part (15 questions) demonstrated knowledge level, and the last part (5 questions) measured dentists’ practice in terms of prevention after dealing with blood-borne pathogens. Data from the 82 questionnaires was analyzed using SPSS 16 software, Mann-Whitney, and chi-square test (α = 0.05). The mean score of knowledge was 7.9 ± 2.522 (from a possible total score of 15). The lowest and highest scores were 2 and 14. 60.7% of the dentists had trained their staff; 58.8% of them accepted infected patients, and 65.9% had attended a PEP workshop. It was found that, of the demographic features, only gender had a significant correlation with level of knowledge (P = 0.0001). This study revealed a low level of knowledge and practice regarding post-exposure prophylaxis, with the mean score of some respondents being below 50%.